UCLA's Next for Guy

This weekend, Sept. 19, Texas defensive tackle Jay Guy will be heading to California to visit UCLA officially. "It's in Los Angeles," Guy said. "I also like that it's something different from what I'm used to. I've heard great things about UCLA and I like how they play in the Rose Bowl." On Oct. 30 Guy visits Minnesota. "I really respect the coaches there, especially coach Richard Hightower..."

Jay Guy, the 6-foot, 307-pound four-star defensive tackle from Eisenhower High School in Houston, Texas, has been committed to California since February, but is still taking other official visits.

Guy, ranked as the No. 17 defensive tackle in the country by Scout.com, says he's still committed to Cal but plans to visit UCLA, Minnesota and Nebraska as well. All of his favorites have offered (29 total).

He took his first official visit to Cal on Sept. 5 for the Maryland game. "It went really good," Guy said about his trip. "My family went with me and they really enjoyed it too. It was a lot of fun. My host was (redshirt freshman defensive back) Josh Hill."

Guy admits one of the highlights was seeing the Bears dismantle the Terps 52-13. "It was a good game," he said. "They beat Maryland pretty bad, which was fun to see. I was really impressed with how prepared they were. I like all the pre-game stuff they do and how they focus.

"Cal really has a great team chemistry," Guy said. "They get together before the game like they are about to go to battle. It's really cool."

The only other recruit visiting the Bears that weekend was five-star defensive tackle George Uko from Don Antonio Lugo High School in Chino, Calif.

So did Guy's visit to Berkeley reinforce his commitment to the Bears in his mind? "It definitely strengthened my commitment," he said. "But I haven't seen the other schools yet. I need to see what they have to offer but right now Cal is on top."

This weekend, Sept. 19, Guy will be heading back to California to visit UCLA officially. "It's in Los Angeles," he said. "I also like that it's something different from what I'm used to.

"I've heard great things about UCLA and I like how they play in the Rose Bowl," he said.

Next month (Oct. 30) Guy will be visiting Minnesota. "I really respect the coaches there, especially (wide receivers) coach Richard Hightower," he said. "He's from Texas and my area and knows what it's like. I feel comfortable around him and we get along great."

Guy also plans on taking his final official visit to Nebraska in November but hasn't scheduled a date yet.

"The coaches (at Nebraska) have a winning tradition," he said. "And they are all defense-focused. I also love the Blackshirt tradition and how they always have players that go onto bigger and better things after leaving Nebraska."

Growing up, Guy says he followed Texas but the Longhorns never offered. He says that's why he's not considering any in-state schools. "If you don't get offered by Texas or Oklahoma if you're in this area, you look somewhere else," he said.

Guy attended the Cal camp during the summer and explains why he chose the Bears so early. "It just felt right," he said. "It seemed like everything was falling into place and that Cal was the place to go. They offer a great education and an opportunity to play early too."

Eisenhower High School opened their 2009 season with a 0-21 loss to Hightower High School. They lost their second game 14-30 at North Shore, but followed that up with a 14-7 victory over Alief Elsik. They head to West Brook High School in Beaumont, Texas, tonight, Sept. 17.

In those three games Guy has 20 tackles and 1 sack.

He finished his junior season with 60 tackles and one sack.

"I have a good motor and it runs until the clock hits zero," he said. "I'm small but I'm athletic and play with heart and play hard."

He says he can bench 350-pounds and squat 500.

"I want to improve my pass rush," he said. "I want to rush the quarterback better and be more aggressive and get more sacks."

Guy plans to major in either sports marketing or business administration and reports a 3.5 core GPA and SAT scores of 1450 and 1050.